


Leaf Bound

by DawnWave



Category: Miraculous Ladybug, Naruto
Genre: F/M, Gen, NaruHina is mentioned but not a focus, Not Beta Read, Romantic Soulmates, Soulmate-Identifying Marks, Soulmates
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-08
Updated: 2020-03-09
Packaged: 2021-02-28 22:54:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 7,374
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23065072
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DawnWave/pseuds/DawnWave
Summary: All Shikamaru wanted was to be average.  All Marinette wanted was to be able to be herself.
Relationships: Hyuuga Hinata/Uzumaki Naruto, Shikamaru Nara/ Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug
Comments: 7
Kudos: 112





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Not Beta read but if you know someone who would be willing to do so, feel free to let me know!

Shikamaru had grown up knowing about the outer countries. How could he not know about them when his soulmate knew about them? He didn't let anyone know that he had that particular aspect of a soulmate mark though, it would be way too troublesome! Shikamaru was one of the rare people in the world with more than one soulmate trait. His most obvious, and thus his only known, one was a ladybug that scrambled all over his chest and arms. As far as he knew it reflected his soulmates current mood or activity, after all, how many ladybugs could sow or do other handicrafts? That's not to say that that's all it did but it was one of the most common things to see his little bug doing. He loved his little mark even though it tickled when it ran across his skin, making him want to squirm. 

His other marks were something he kept secret after all sharing knowledge and skills wasn't very common. That's not to say he knew all of her thoughts nor she all of his. The knowledge that the bond shared was more the world or general knowledge that they had as well as what they learned in school. As for skills, well, his mother had never taught him to sow or how to make clothes at all and that was one of the most useful skills to have as a shinobi. Baking and cooking was another thing his mother had never had to teach him so it was fairly understandable when his parents were shocked when he made them a cake and iced it expertly for their wedding anniversary one year. He didn't tell them how he'd done it though, that would lead to questions and questions were troublesome. 

His final mark was one that normally gave him the most comfort, a soft tune that played constantly in the back of his mind. The tune changed slightly depending on her health and her state of mind. When she was happy or creating something it was a soft, happy tune when she was upset or stressed it took on a more sombre tone. When she was angry the tune became more staccato and lately, it was the melancholy, staccato tunes that were the most prominent tunes he heard. To make matters worse, his little ladybug hadn't drawn or sown anything in quite some time and hadn't scurried over him happily in over a year. In short, Shikamaru was worried and his teammates were starting to take notice, all of the Konoha 12 had.

“Okay Shikamaru, enough is enough! The war is over, repairs are underway and you get to cloud watch or laze around whenever you aren't training or working. What's bugging you?” Ino demanded.

“And don't tell us 'Nothing' as you've looked troubled for the last few weeks,” Naruto stated bluntly. It was unusual for Naruto to get involved as he wasn't the most observant but Shikamaru knew he needed to be honest with them. They had been through a lot together after all.

“ Troublesome, not here. I don't know how much everyone knows and I have a feeling at least part of the explanation will need the Hokage's attention so lets head there and once he raises the barrier, I'll explain.” He sighed heavily. The others looked at each other, then swiftly finished their meals and walked to the Hokage's office. Kakashi was surprised to see them all but quickly agreed to raise the barrier. Shikamaru sighed and mumbled a quiet 'Troublesome' before looking at his friends and Kakashi and starting to speak.

“As most of you know I have a ladybug soulmate mark that likes running around and generally being troublesome,” he began and saw most of them nod. “What you don't know is that that isn't my only soul mark. I have two others, though all signs point to them belonging to the same person.” Everyone's eyes showed their surprise at that and he raised his hand to forestall their questions. “The reason I say this is one of those marks is the one where there is always a tune playing that allows you to keep track of how your soulmate is emotionally and the tune always matches my little ladybug's mood. The last mark is why I said we needed the privacy barrier. It's the one where the two soulmates share skills and knowledge.” Shikamaru shifted slightly from foot to foot.

“That is how I can cook, bake, sew and draw. I have no idea what abilities of mine my soulmate got. Anyway, with the knowledge it seems we share a pool of general knowledge about the world we live in, however, they are not in the elemental nations. They live beyond its borders, probably in a country called France as that is where quite a lot of their knowledge seems to concentrate and they speak a language called French. Part of our skillshare thing is we can speak each other's languages.” He concluded with a shrug.

“So what does all of that have to do with why you have been so distracted?” Ino asked gently.

Shikamaru sighed then in a small show of trust, took his vest and shirt off, showing them the ladybug. He glanced at the clock then looked down at the little bug. At this time of the day, it normally had it's nose in a book or was busy writing however, today it was just sitting holding a leg much like they would if they hurt themselves. He went to touch it, only for it to shy away from his finger. Shikamaru closed his eyes in sad acceptance and dropped his hand.

“It's been reacting like this for two weeks. I used to be able to stroke it to try to send my soulmate comfort but two weeks ago the song changed from it's already melancholy tune to one that is almost non-existent and the ladybug started shying away from all forms of touch. I'm worried about what could have caused this change.”

Silence met Shikamaru's revelation but he didn't lift his head, choosing instead to keep looking at the cowering ladybug that was now on his arm. It seemed to understand that he was worried but knew that there was nothing that could be done to help.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * 

Marinette didn't know what to think of the fact that she had three soulmate marks or indicators. She loved the lazy, shadowy Shika deer that wondered over her torso and upper arms dearly though. She didn't know why her soulmate was best represented by a deer or shadows but she didn't question it. Her soulmate's song was just as relaxing most of the time and she loved designing while listening to it. When she turned thirteen she noticed that the deer now had a piece of material around its neck. The material had a spiral that looked almost like a leaf, which she recognised as the symbol for Konoha. 

The only reason she recognised it was due to the shared knowledge that she received from her soulmate and due to that she had guessed that he or she was a shinobi for the village. It was also due to this shared knowledge that she knew the weird eyes she had unlocked when she was fifteen and in the middle of a battle as Ladybug, were known as the Rinnegan.

In retrospect, it was due to knowing that her eyes were from the elemental nations that when her mother had revealed that Marinette was adopted, in an argument over Marinette's trustworthiness of all things, that the news didn't truly hurt as much as it would have otherwise. When Sabine had screamed out that no daughter of hers would ever be as unreliable and as much of a liar as Marinette was, Marinette had, at first, been confused. Seeing this Sabine had decided to spit the fact that they had adopted Marinette from some random traveller when she was barely a year old in her face. It had hurt Marinette to think that a simple thing like being adopted would make her mother so susceptible to Lila's lies but at the same time, it let Marinette form her plans to go to the elemental nations with a clear conscience.

After defeating Hawkmoth and taking back the Black Cat miraculous from Chat Noir without finding out his identity nor he hers, Marinette had simply been waiting to finish her education before packing up and leaving France. She knew she would need to be the one to move as a shinobi couldn't abandon their village. Especially not a Jonin, if the jacket her mark sported was anything to go by. She wondered if the mark that represented her wore clothes too. She guessed it would be a Ladybug due to her miraculous but wouldn't know for sure until they met. 

She had been so caught up in her thoughts that the sudden shove that sent her spinning off balance and in turn sent her tumbling down the stairs came as an unwelcome shock. Marinette kept her eyes closed as she mentally checked to see if she was injured or not. She had been Ladybug for so long that this was second nature to her but that didn't mean she could contain her wince as she checked her arms and found her left one was broken. Thankfully, she had only been about halfway up the stairs when it happened or Marinette was sure she would be worse off. 

“That's for Lila,” the person who shoved her sneered before vanishing back into the crowd. Marinette sighed, even with Hawkmoth gone, Lila was still finding ways to bring out the worst in people. She didn't know who it was that had pushed her nor did she care if she was honest. Finding out would do nothing to change the opinions of all of Lila's sycophants so Marinette ignored it. She was going to be late for class if she didn't hurry.

Once school was finished for the day, Marinette made sure she had everything of value to her packed away in a suitcase along with everything else she could fit into it. Thanks to her Soulmate's knowledge of fuinjutsu she was then able to seal that bag into a seal that she had sown onto a ribbon that she had taken to wearing tied around her wrist. She even sealed away the miracle box with the consent of the kwami's that lived in it. 

To anyone looking around her room, nothing had changed. There was still a sowing machine and design paraphernalia stacked away in a corner. Her computer still sat on her desk, heck even her large stuffed cat was sitting on her bed. None of those things was what she would be taking with her. She had bought a new sowing machine along with several other things when Jagged had paid for his last commission. She had insisted on delivering it in person as she had then explained to him what was going on in her life and what her plan was moving forward. He had been disappointed that she was leaving but he had understood and helped book her a plane ticket to Japan and from there he had booked a ticket on the only ship that went to and from the elemental nations. 

The plane ticket was booked for graduation day, which would help hide the fact that she had left as no one would expect her to miss it after stubbornly completing school. What none of her classmates or her teachers or even her parents would expect is the bombshell that would be dropped on them during the ceremony. Marinette had meticulously documented everything that had been happening at the school and sent it to the Department of Education as well as the school board. What happened to those involved after everything came to light wasn't her problem.

The following six weeks blurred together as Marinette completed all her school work and let her arm heal up. A side effect of being pushed around so much was she flinched whenever anyone came near her. It wasn't noticeable to anyone who wasn't trained to notice it but it still annoyed her. She knew she would have to have at least a small amount of counselling to deal with the problem and she hoped whoever her soulmate was wouldn't be disappointed in her. 

The morning of her flight from Paris dawned with a slightly grey and anticipatory air to it. Moving quickly and quietly, Marinette did a final check of her room, making absolutely sure that she had left absolutely nothing that she would miss behind. All her lockboxes, designs and even her spare fabrics, needles and pins were packed. Once she was sure she had everything she slipped out of the house and walked as though she was headed to school, knowing that Sabine was watching her. Once she was out of sight of the bakery, Marinette slipped down into one of the entrances to the metro, boarding a train that would take her as close to the airport as possible. 

The flight took off on time and as the piolet managed to get them to fly in a jet stream, it was shorter than Marinette thought it would be. She was grateful for this as it let her take her time getting to the harbour so that she could board the ship that would take her to her final destination. She was nervous yet excited to be on her way to meet her soulmate. Excited because who wouldn't be? Nervous because, again, who wouldn't be? This was her soulmate after all and she had left everything familiar to her to be with them. She had no idea what they would be like or even how they would react to her just showing up out of the blue. It was times like this that she wished she could at least send a notice ahead so that they would know she was coming.

The boat ride was uneventful and she was able to pass through customs with no issues. It was only after she had cleared customs that she realised she might have a problem. She knew the way to Konoha but it was a military village and they wouldn't have any reason to trust her. She also knew that while the villages themselves were relatively safe, the roads between them weren't and she would have no protection as she made her way there. Just as she was about to start spiralling anxiously she spotted a person that had a Konoha headband on. She walked over to him quickly, making sure he saw her walking towards him and that he could see she wasn't armed.

“Excuse me!” She called to him making him pause and look at her. His blond hair and startling blue eyes so similar to her own were the some of the first things that she took note of now that she got passed the fact that he had the same symbol on his headband as her mark. She purposefully ignored the amount of orange that he was wearing!

“Yes, can I help you?” He said to her looking confused as to why she had called out to him.

“I hope so! Um, you see, well...” she paused to take a deep breath as he looked at her worriedly. “This is going to sound really stupid and I won't blame you if you tell me to leave you alone but my soulmate mark has the same symbol on its headband as the one you are wearing and I was hoping you would be able to take me to Konoha,” she rambled nervously barely stopping for breath. He smiled down at her.

“This might sound rude but I'd need to see the mark for myself before I can do anything to help you.” He scratched the back of his head, “I was meant to head to Paris to try to find a friends soulmate, I hope he won't mind the delay,” he muttered.

“Oh, um, sure. I just hope it hasn't decided to hide somewhere on my torso as I really don't want to take my shirt off.” She said with a blush which made him blush too. She put her bag on the floor between her feet then took her jacket off then checked her arms and smiled fondly. There on her forearm was her lazy Shika deer, smoking a cigarette. She shook her head in amusement.

“Smoking again? Really?”

The blond looked at the mark and started to laugh. “Well, it looks like you are the one I was sent to find. However, to be certain, what type of hobbies do you enjoy?” Marinette looked at him in confusion and hope before answering his question.

“Baking and sewing why?”

“Just needed a way to confirm that you are who I was being sent to find! Right, let me go get this ticket refunded and we can head out if you feel up to travelling today. If not we can book into a motel or something, whatever you are most comfortable with! Oh! Before I forget, I'm Naruto. Uzumaki Naruto, dattebayo!” He said with a big grin.

“I'm ok to travel today though I can't guarantee how fast I'll be able to travel.” Marinette was surprised that her soulmate was sending someone to find her, she wondered what had happened to make him do that. She knew she could be falling for a trap but something about this man told her to trust him. She was also curious about why her eyes were so similar to his she had to admit. It took an hour of waiting around for Naruto's ticket refunded and to grab something for them to eat but to Marinette, it felt like the time dragged on forever. Once that was done though, they were on the road to Konoha in next to no time at all. Marinette wished she could transform into Ladybug and use her yo-yo to travel through the trees if only to speed things up but she didn't dare. There was just no way of knowing how anyone in the elemental nations would react.

Since they were walking it took them three days to reach Konoha and in that time Marinette found Naruto to be good company. In fact, it felt like she had known him for far longer than the three days that it had been. She had a feeling Trixx would love Naruto although if Marinette was honest with herself she was reluctant to hand any of the miraculi out until she was more familiar with the country and whether or not they were needed. She was also very nervous of pairing a self-confessed Prankster King with an agent of chaos like Trixx. 

On the last night of their journey to Konoha, they had started talking about family and their views on it. It had come as a surprise to her to know that Naruto was an orphan, just like he had been very surprised to know that she had been adopted and that she had absolutely no idea who her real parents were. Unknown to her that had made Naruto remember an off-handed statement by Jiraiya when he was drunk the one night. They had been talking about regrets and Jiraiya had mentioned that he wished he had managed to find out what had happened to Naruto's twin. Apparently, she had gone missing a month after their parents had died but Jiraiya had never been able to find any leads regarding where she might have gone. With Marinette knowing anything about her past and with their eyes being so similar, Naruto had to fight not to be too hopeful and to remember that she might not be his twin at all. 

The wall that surrounds Konoha loomed above Naruto and Marinette as they approached the main gate. They paused for a moment so that Marinette could admire them before Naruto insisted that they carry on. Their first stop, once they had signed in at the gate, was the Hokage Tower as Naruto needed to check-in. He knew that Shikamaru would be in the office too as he was technically the client for this mission. The only reason that he could walk straight in was that he had sent a toad ahead after Marinette had fallen asleep on the first night as well as each night of their trip so that Shikamaru had time to prepare himself. 

Kakashi and Shikamaru looked up from their discussion as Naruto lead Marinette into the room. To say they were surprised would be an understatement, was this Shikamaru's soulmate? She was so small! To the trained shinobi it looked like she wouldn't last a minute against an academy student. Marinette blushed when she saw the two men looking at her in a frank appraisal.

“Hi,” she said her voice almost a whisper it was so soft. All three men couldn't help but remember Hinata when she was still too shy to really talk to Naruto despite knowing they were soulmates. Kakashi looked at Shikamaru and knew that he would have to be the one to speak up.

“Yo, the name's Kakashi and I'm the Hokage here, unfortunately. Naruto says you are probably the soulmate of one of my shinobi?” Kakashi kept his voice friendly and light in the hopes of getting her to relax slightly and it seemed to work as she gave a small smile even though her shoulders were still tense. She then took her jacket off much to their surprise. They soon understood though when they saw the stag that ambled lazily down her arm then lay down as if it couldn't be bothered with all the fuss. Shikamaru glanced at the other two men before muttering “troublesome” and lighting a cigarette while leaning against the wall next to an open window. He was about to take a drag of his smoke when he glanced at the stag again and froze. The stag had a cigarette in its mouth too and Marinette was scowling

at it.

“I understand that he probably smokes to relax but seriously? I hate that habit!” Marinette muttered before looking up and blushing when she saw she was being watched again.

“Well, I think we can confirm you are Shikamaru's soulmate from that demonstration,” Kakashi chuckled. Marinette looked up sharply.

“What do you mean?” 

To avoid having to explain, Shikamaru stubbed out his cigarette and took off his jacket. Almost as if it knew he wanted it to be seen, his little Ladybug came scurrying down from his shoulder to sit on his forearm. Marinette looked at it in amazement as it sat calmly letting itself be seen. Marinette smiled at the sight of it then started to giggle which had everyone in the office looking at her in confusion which only caused her to laugh even more.

“I always knew my mark would be a Ladybug,” she said while taking deep breaths to try and control her laughter. She shook her head “Sorry it's just really funny to have it confirmed.” The shinobi stared at her in utter confusion until Shikamaru shook his head.

“Troublesome,” he muttered making Marinette look at him.

“Why is knowing what my mark would be but laughing when it's confirmed troublesome?” She asked in confusion.

“It's a Nara thing, I think,” Naruto said before Shikamaru could even think to defend himself. “Every time they actually have to do anything it's always 'troublesome'. Shika has said that to almost every new situation that he encounters as well as about most people for as long as I've known him!” Marinette took a moment to marvel at just how loud Naruto was even as she processed what he had said. She was about to say something when Naruto frowned and turned to face Kakashi again.

“Sensei I would like to request a blood test be run on Marinette.” He said rather formally.

Kakashi looked surprised. “I'll grant that request on the condition I get to know what we're meant to be checking for. Do you think Marinette is sick or...?” He let his voice trail off. Marinette was about to state that she was in perfect health when Naruto blushed.

“Oh! I think I used the wrong wording there. I meant a DNA test. Before you ask why I'll explain,” he continued in a hurry. “During my three-year training trip with ero-sensei he would occasionally get really drunk and say things that he normally wouldn't. Anyway, the one evening he mentioned that I had a twin sister when I was born but that she went missing a month later and ero-sensei was unable to find her nor could he find any trace of where she might have gone. I know it might be a long shot but Marinette mentioned that she was adopted and honestly looking at her eyes is almost like looking into a mirror at my eyes.” 

Silence met that last statement as everyone thought about what Naruto had said. Marinette looked at his eyes and saw what he meant. The resemblance was uncanny and with the rest of the coincidences, it stood to reason that what he said could be true! It would be amazing to find at least one member of her birth family she had to admit that she had had dreams of that happening ever since Sabine had told her she was adopted. She had to wonder if he had the Rinnegan too though or if it was just her.

Marinette had been so lost in her musings that she jumped when someone touched her arm. She looked at the person who had touched her and saw that it was a female with pink hair.

“Hi, sorry to scare you but you weren't responding when we spoke to you. My name is Sakura and I was Naruto's team-mate as well as Shikamaru's classmate. Anyway, I need to draw some blood so that we can get those tests done. I'm also going to give you the standard health check we give everyone who is new to the village just so that we have a base to work from should you ever need to see a doctor. So any injuries that are still needing to heal or anything that we should know ahead of time?”

Marinette blinked a couple of times at the barrage of words that had just been thrown at her.

“Um, yeah sure. Sorry, I guess travelling is starting to catch up with me. Injuries, um none that should be lingering but I broke my arm about six or so weeks ago so I'm being careful with it. I don't think there should be anything else...” Marinette said nervously. She didn't want to tell them about every injury she had had as Ladybug or even thanks to Lila so she kept quiet about them. She watched as Sakura's hands glowed green and she ran them over her doing a basic scan only to bite her lip as Sakura frowned.

“Well other then your body having almost as many healed injuries as Naruto you are physically fine. As you said, your arm shows signs of recent healing as do a couple of your ribs which I suspect you didn't know about as you didn't mention them. There is also some signs of recent weight loss and I hope that that was not due to dieting as you don't need to lose weight at all. I need to draw some blood now and run it down to the hospital but other than that I'm going to give you a clean bill of health. Are you able to talk about any of your previous injuries or should that be done in a more private setting? I know that it's not always easy to talk about one's past.” 

Marinette closed her eyes and reviewed her knowledge of how the shinobi villages ran then took a deep breath and asked if there was a way to seal the office for privacy. Once the barrier was set up she told the others in the office her story. It took most of the day to tell them everything, from how she was chosen as Ladybug to how Chat Noir constantly pushed for a reveal as he was convinced she was his soulmate but she had never caved to his demands. She told them how it was only due to a liars influence on her parents that they even revealed that she was adopted. She even revealed the fact that she had the Rinnegan, something that she had never revealed to anyone before. 

Subconsciously Marinette knew she was probably oversharing and that she needed to stop talking but now that she had started she was finding it difficult to stop. It was as though all the negative emotions and experiences had been building up for so long that although she had only meant to give them the bare bones of what had happened, by opening the bottle she had sealed everything in ever so slightly they were now all pouring out. By the time she had told them everything, her voice had grown hoarse and her eyes were red from the tears that she had shed. While she felt physically drained Marinette found that she was feeling much lighter than she had in a while, which told her just how much she had been carrying with her emotionally. 

It took Marinette about five minutes of self-reflection after she had finished speaking before she realised that nobody had said anything. She slowly raised her eyes to see if anyone had left while she was talking only to be tackled by Naruto who hugged her tightly as though he was scared she would crumble into nothing if he let go. Kakashi was looking at her with pure empathy in his eyes as if what she had said had struck a chord within him. Sakura was gripping the back of a chair as if to stop herself from walking out of the door and tracking down all those that had hurt Marinette to give them a taste of their own medicine. After hesitating slightly she let her eyes land on Shikamaru. She hesitated because she didn't want to see the disgust she was sure she would see in his eyes. She didn't know him at all and he hadn't said much since she had arrived so she had no idea how he would react.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * ** * * * * * * * * * 

Shikamaru didn't know what to think when he walked into the Hokage's office that morning. Kakashi had sent a message saying that Naruto was on his way back with a girl who he suspected was the soulmate that he had been sent out to find. He knew that Naruto must have sent the message back with one of his toads saying that they would be arriving sometime that day and if he was honest with himself, he was nervous. Who wouldn't be? Sure the girl Naruto had found might be the soulmate of someone else that lived in Konoha and not his soulmate but Shikamaru was sure if that was the case then Naruto would have sent her to Konoha with someone else.

He was glad that they hadn't arrived yet when he walked in as it gave him time to get comfortable and to try to relax. By the time Naruto walked into the office with the girl though, despite having been chatting casually to Kakashi, Shikamaru was anything but relaxed. Perhaps it was due to his training or perhaps it was simply because he was male, Shikamaru couldn't help but notice how exceptionally pretty the girl was. Petite with ravens wing black hair and eyes so blue they could rival Naruto's, a grey jacket that must have been fitted at one stage but was now slightly loose on her. She waved shyly and greeted them and Shikamaru was surprised at how timid she was. His mark had always been vivacious and the tune in his head had always been bubbly, sure it had been muted recently but the fact stood that her behaviour was a contrast to what he had been expecting. 

When she revealed the shadow Shika deer soul mark wearing what was clearly a Konoha headband and Jonin flake jacket, Shikamaru found himself desperate for a cigarette so he moved to the window to indulge himself. When the others in the room started to chuckle at something he glanced over only to see that the deer had started to smoke too, only to get a muttered complaint from the girl. Sighing he killed his cigarette and made sure that his little ladybug was visible and was surprised not only by the fact that she started laughing but also by the fact that she had suspected that it would be a ladybug in the first place.

He stayed quiet for the rest of the conversation, deciding that he would rather learn more about her by observing her before he said anything, only to be thrown yet another series of curveballs. Being given a magical piece of jewellery at thirteen? Being known as a superhero? Having the  _ Rinnegan _ ? Being targeted by a pathological liar and having her life pretty much destroyed? How was his soulmate still sane considering she didn't have any support after her mentor had had his memory wiped? To say nothing of the injuries that Sakura had found.

It was taking Shikamaru every inch of his self-control to hold himself back from joining Naruto with his arms around her as those questions swirled around in his brain. Something of that must have been evident in his song as Marinette lifted her head then held out a hand to him which he eagerly took. 

“I know I will need to go for counselling and that I can't say ''I'm OK'' without it being hollow and meaningless but I'm still alive and I made it here safely. That has to count for something, right?” Marinette said softly while looking at him.

It was that simple moment that made everything click for Shikamaru. This was his soulmate and he would need to be there for her come what may. Sure she had issues but so did he so who was he to judge? He knew that if he wanted to be with her as more then a friend he would need to work on his communication skills and she would need to work on her confidence as it had been systematically destroyed. It wasn't going to be smooth sailing but Shikamaru was confident that things would work out for the best. 

_ A Few Years Later: _

“Naomi Nara you're going to be late for school!” Marinette yelled from the kitchen where she was making breakfast. Shikamaru had come back from an S rank mission the night before and as such she was making all of his favourites. 

“Honestly I think she might be worse than I ever was,” Marinette remarked to Tikki in a much quieter voice. “I know I was a nightmare to get to wake up and to school on time but Naomi takes things to the next level!”

“It's probably my influence,” a sleep roughened voice came from the doorway causing Marinette to look up and see Shikamaru looking half asleep with a giggling pair of twins in his arms. “I'm pretty sure Ino and Chouji can and have told you multiple stories of what I was like at Naomi's age.” 

Marinette looked at the boys in his arms so he just nodded showing that they were why he was awake instead of resting like he should be. At least he didn't have any injuries so he could still play with them without hurting himself. At six years old they were highly active which Marinette knew was their Uzumaki heritage coming through as Naruto had apparently been the same way.

Less than an hour later and the house was quiet again with all three of the kids at the academy. Marinette smiled as she walked into the bedroom and found Shikamaru half asleep on the bed. She climbed up next to him and he automatically moved to cuddle around her. Marinette smiled as she thought about how har things had come in the last few years.

“Hey, Shika?” Marinette started making him look at her curiously. “I know we said no more but, um, I'm pregnant.”

Marinette watched as all signs of sleep vanished from his face as he registered her news. She nodded slightly when his song tuned curious wanting confirmation and smiled as it turned to pure joy. Yes, life was good now, Marinette thought as he kissed her. 


	2. Omake

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Graduation and how everything goes wrong - for Lila.

Omake:

It was finally graduation day for Mlle Bustier's class and the members of said class couldn't be more excited. They had been together for most of their school career and while they would miss seeing each other on an almost daily basis there were other things they wouldn't miss. Marinette and her jealousy which had lead to her bullying their everyday Ladybug, Lila, for one. Exams were a close second though. They couldn't understand why Marinette had kept bullying Lila when Adrien had revealed that Kagami was his soulmate but they had taken to subtly getting revenge for the girl anyway. 

After walking into the hall where the graduation ceremony was to be held they quickly found their seats and settled into them, smugly noticing that there hadn't been a chair reserved for Marinette nor had any been set aside for her parents. The ceremony started well with the standard speeches by the Headmaster and the valedictorian, or runner up in this case as the Valedictorian had refused to attend due to personal reasons. Then the guest speaker stood up. To everyone's surprise, it was Jagged Stone that was the guest speaker that year but what was more surprising for them was that he seemed unusually serious.

“Thanks for the introduction, even though I'm sure most of your students recognise me. Most people who know my music and through my music know of me, know that I am usually a pretty rock n roll guy.”

He paused as laughter rippled across the hall before continuing. He spoke about the value of hard work and the challenges that they would face now that they had graduated. He told them about the value of having a dream that they could follow. He even gave them a few funny anecdotes about things that had happened to them after he graduated. They had relaxed quite a bit since he started talking so it came as a shock when his tone changed as he spoke.

“I am, however, only where I am due to hard work and great friends. A fair bit of luck may have been involved too. Anyway, it is because I work hard and have great friends that I keep an eye out for any up and coming talents so that I can give them that same sort of help.” He sighed. “It is also why I get very angry when people try and lie about knowing me and when people actively sabotage other people's work. Something that has happened in this school.” His eyes turned flinty before he continued.

“Five years ago I came across a very talented designer who attended this school while they were doing a work experience day. They designed my new look and album cover and have been doing so ever since which means I had a lot of contact with them.” 

Pride echoed through his words as he spoke about the designer and everything they had been through together only to turn to disappointment when he spoke of how she had had to leave causing everyone to shift guiltily in their chairs.

“The designer I am talking about is MDC or as you would all know her, Marinette Dupain-Cheng.”

Silence greeted that bombshell that he had just dropped. Alya, Nino, Adrien and the rest of Marinette's classmates exchanged looks. How could Jagged admire that bully so much?

“I see you recognise the name. Good. She was meant to be your Valedictorian but she knew that today would be her best time to leave to join her soulmate in his home country.” 

Jagged's tone was ice-cold as he told them just how badly they had treated her and how badly they had messed up. He spoke about how she had three soulmate marks that all pointed to the same person but how she had hidden them for fear of being ridiculed. He explained how she had come to him in tears after being pushed down the stairs six weeks prior and how he was the one to book her trip for her. He even looked pointedly at a camera as he said even if she had been adopted, her parents should have trusted her rather than a liar.

Lila paled as several people walked into the hall, each one looking very official.

“Due to Marinette's treatment here by the students and the staff, Marinette went to the board of education and these wonderful people will now explain their findings and hand out the punishments that have been deemed appropriate.” 

Jagged's face turned very serious as he looked over the gathered students and patents.

“For those that were not involved in any way, I apologise for what is happening now. Marinette was content to let things slide for the most part as she was already planning on leaving. Penny, my manager, and I talked her into laying these charges and handing over the evidence that she had been gathering for a while now on the hopes that those she once thought of as friends asked her about why she acted the way she did.” 

Here he paused again with a sigh and rubbed his eyes tiredly.

“Honestly, I think it is only due to her soulmate that she didn't break as many others would. And even then I think it came close on some occasions. Either way, I know this day was meant to be a joyous one and this was a terrible blow for you, hence why the school board has agreed to hold your actual graduation ceremony in roughly a week. We are sorry for the inconvenience this has caused to those that have taken time off of work and hope that you will be able to come to the evening ceremony.”

Jagged bowed before he left the stage, his eyes strangely misty.

No sooner had he left the stage then the officials walked over to the people that had aided Lila the most and handed them folders that they read in horror. Instead of being handed a folder, Lila herself was arrested and read her rights. Adrien looked around to see if he could find Mlle Bustier and M Damocles only to see them being lead into a side room by the school board. 

Kagami walked over to him and handed him a letter.

“Marinette stopped by last night and dropped this off for you. Apparently, she knew that the class was blocking you from trying to be her friend and after they destroyed her old phone she didn't bother replacing it as she knew she was leaving. That's why she didn't bother trying to fight much this past year or so after you and I got together properly.” Kagami sighed and looked over at the screaming members of his class.

“She doesn't blame you, you know. Either way, I wish her well with her journey and I hope she gets treated better wherever she is.”

Adrien looked at the letter in his hand then tucked it into his pocket. A tear leaked from his eye.

“I'd hoped that I would be able to reconnect with her now that the class won't be able to try to control me or block me. I guess it's now too late.”

Kagami gripped his hand even as Adrien lent forward slightly and rested his forehead against hers. No more words were needed, all they wanted was for Marinette to be happy and hopefully, she would be with her soulmate.


End file.
